Card list

CardList is a thin layout primitive that wraps any card-shaped child (Card, CardControl, CardTestimonial, CollapsibleCard, PricingCard) in a column or row. Handles gap, equal-column distribution, and wrapping so the card components themselves stay layout-agnostic.

For mixed equal-weight content (Cards + Tags + Fields side-by-side), use FieldGrid instead — it's the same layout primitive but with stricter equal-cell semantics.

Use it for

• Settings panels stacking multiple CardControls vertically
• Feature/service grids using horizontal Card columns
• Pricing-tier rows with PricingCards side by side
• Testimonial walls with CardTestimonials

Import

import { CardList } from '@brikdesigns/bds';

Variants

Vertical

Stacks cards top-to-bottom at full width. Default orientation for feeds and settings lists.

<CardList gap="md">
  <Card>...</Card>
  <Card>...</Card>
  <Card>...</Card>
</CardList>

Horizontal

Lays cards out in a row with equal-width columns. Wraps to a new line on narrow viewports.

<CardList orientation="horizontal" gap="lg">
  <Card variant="outlined" padding="lg">
    <CardTitle>Design</CardTitle>
    <CardDescription>Brand and identity.</CardDescription>
  </Card>
  <Card variant="outlined" padding="lg">
    <CardTitle>Development</CardTitle>
    <CardDescription>Product engineering.</CardDescription>
  </Card>
</CardList>

Horizontal

When each card declares its own width (e.g. a scrollable carousel of products), set fitContent so items size to their children instead of stretching to fill equal columns.

<CardList orientation="horizontal" gap="md" fitContent>
  <Card style={{ width: 240 }}>...</Card>
  <Card style={{ width: 240 }}>...</Card>
</CardList>

Gap scale

Four sizes — sm, md (default), lg, xl. Match the visual density of the surrounding context.

<CardList gap="sm">...</CardList>   /* tight settings rows */
<CardList gap="md">...</CardList>   /* default */
<CardList gap="lg">...</CardList>   /* breathing room */
<CardList gap="xl">...</CardList>   /* hero/feature grids */

When not to use

• Don't use CardList for non-card children. It expects card-shaped layout — single column-fill or equal columns. Free-form children misalign.
• Don't use CardList for tabular data. Use a Table when columns share semantics. CardList is for grouping, not structured data.
• Don't nest CardLists deeply. One level is fine; two becomes hard to reason about. If you need a complex grid, build it directly with CSS Grid.

Accessibility

• Renders a <ul> with each child wrapped in <li> automatically.
• Screen readers announce the list and item count, which is appropriate semantics for grouped cards.

API

fitContent only applies to the horizontal orientation. Plus standard <ul> HTML attributes.

Related

• Card — most common child
• CardControl, CardTestimonial, CollapsibleCard, PricingCard — other card-family children
• FieldGrid — alternative for read-mode Field rows
• Storybook playground